He's a Handsome Little Mystery
by thecoleaderofgroupb
Summary: AU: Instead of sitting around and moping on Valentine's Day, Sonya decides to go out and capture her day in photos. Between the bites at local eateries and bike riding along the beach, she keeps running into a tall, lanky blonde with a crooked smile and a warm accent. She's never seen him before, but maybe he's the little mystery that she needed on a day like this.


"He did what?!"

Sonya rolled her eyes as she looked around her room. She brushed a strand of hair away from her face and stood up from her desk, walking towards the window to look outside as she cradled the phone between her shoulder and ear.

"It was time," Sonya said as she played with her curtains. "The relationship was starting to fizzle and I kinda figured that he had his eye on someone else."

"Jerk!" Harriet growled on the other end. "Oh, when I see that little punk again, I'm gonna kick his stickbutt for you!"

"Chill Harri," Sonya said as she walked over to her bed. "Like I said, the spark was gone and it's kind of a relief knowing that we don't have to go on pretending that it's all perfect, ya know?"

Harriet sighed as she messed up her hair. Sonya winced when she heard a loud BANG! on the other end and guessed that Harriet had found something to kick to take her frustration out on Sonya's ex Minho for dumping her best friend the day before Valentine's Day. Sonya sat back on her bed and held the phone to her ear as she looked around the room again.

"I'll bring the tissues, movies, and popcorn for tomorrow," Harriet told her once she finished taking her frustrations out on, well, whatever she kicked.

Sonya bit her lip and pulled the phone away from her ear. It was a tempting offer, but she thought that she had heard that the weather was going be sunny and beautiful tomorrow, which seemed like a waste to sit in and cry over some stupid romcoms that she had already seen numerous times. She brought up the weather app on her phone and checked tomorrow's forecast. Yup, high of 85° with winds and low cloud coverage.

"You okay? Did we lose connection?" Harriet asked.

Sonya closed the weather app and her eyes fell on her camera, a gift from her mom. It hadn't been used in a while because Sonya had relied mostly on the camera app on her phone. She picked up her camera and studied it as she switched back to Harriet's call.

"Ya know what? Cancel the romcom fest tomorrow," Sonya said as she pulled out the charger for her camera's battery. "I'm going out and having a Me day."

* * *

_Yeah, this beats sitting inside and watching The Notebook for the millionth time any day_, Sonya thought as she took a sip of her coffee. She thanked the waiter as he set her breakfast plate down in front of her and she quickly snapped a picture of it with the floral arrangement in the center of her table. It had been a good day so far – she got up early, went for a short jog, and was eating breakfast at a local café. Her memory card contained some great shots of the sunrise from her morning jog and a flock of birds flying in a V formation overheard.

She dug into her omelet and looked around the café as she chewed. Most of the people who were in there were older couples who liked to start their day early, along with a few athletes carb loading. She had to admit, she was surprised that she didn't come in here more often – the café was small but the food was good and didn't cost an arm and a leg. Plus it was fun watching people in the café and the ones wandering around town.

She jumped at the sound of something breaking and she craned her neck to see what happened. A waitress was retrieving a broom and dustpan for a broken cup and saucer along with a plate that once held a bagel, which was now squashed on the floor.

"I am so, so, so sorry!" the waitress told the young man who was standing nearby. "I'll get you a fresh tea and bagel right away. No charge of course – it's my fault I'm such a klutz! Nothing hit you, right?"

The young man reached out a hand and gently rested it on the waitress's shoulder. "I'm fine, really – why don't ya just take a deep breath and relax a little. I'm fine – no rush really," the young man replied in a warm accented voice. He looked around the café and noticed that everyone else was staring at him and the flustered waitress who was carrying away the broken pieces to the back.

"Right, everything's all right now," he said to the rest of the café patrons. "Ya can go back to your conversations and whatnot. It's all under control."

Sonya quickly diverted her attention back to her plate and finished her omelet. She took a few more sips of her coffee and glanced in the reflection of the window at the young man who was waiting for his order. He was tall, taller than Harriet but maybe a few inches shorter than Minho. His sandy blonde hair was messy and slightly windblown – some of it was falling into his eyes and some of it was swooping up in different directions. He was wearing a button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, straight leg pants, and a pair of sneakers. A pair of aviator sunglasses hung off the pocket of his button down. At that moment, he turned towards the window and Sonya took this moment to look down at her coffee cup, finish the contents of it, and flag down her waiter for the bill. She had the money in her hand when he came by and she handed over enough to cover a tip.

"You need change?" the waiter asked her as he picked up the tray and her plate.

Sonya shook her head no before thanking him and grabbing her bag to head out the door. She dug around in her bag for her bike helmet and walked over to the rack. She spun her combination lock to the correct numbers and secured the lock around the center bars on her bike. She put her helmet on and checked to make sure the road was clear before straddling her bike and pedaling towards the beach.

* * *

**Harriet**

So, how's the Me day going?

_Sent 12:41 PM_

**Sonya**

Not be cliché, but it's been amazing and exactly what I needed.

_Sent 12:42 PM_

Sonya pressed Send on her phone and she put it away in her pocket as she wheeled her bike to the closest rack near the shops lining the beach. She secured her bike to the rack and began wandering past the shops. Most of them were tourist traps with postcards, sundries, and the usual tacky tourist stuff. She wandered by one shop which had trendy clothes in the window and she decided to stop in.

"Hey there!" Brenda said as she ran out from behind the counter. "Happy Valentine's Day/Singles Awareness/whatever you celebrate day to you!"

"Thanks, same to you!" Sonya said as she hugged her back. "I didn't know you worked here!"

Brenda spread her arms out and gestured to the racks of clothes. "You didn't know that I worked at a pricey beachside boutique with all the fashion trends you need to be wearing right now? Ah shuck, well now ya do. Oh and if you buy anything, I'll give you my employee discount to use, which is 30% off anything except the beauty and candles."

"Aww you don't have to!" Sonya protested as she walked over to a rack and began to browse it.

Brenda rolled her eyes as she walked back to the counter. "I know that but you're one of my friends and I want to. Let me know if you need anything."

"Will do," Sonya promised her as she flipped through the racks. She skimmed over a selection of too short skirts, sheer beach cover-ups, and paused when she found one dress hanging on the rack that was kind of cute. It had a very 40s silhouette with the halter neck ties and the rectangular collar at the top. It was a vibrant shade of blue – not a color she normally gravitated to but she thought it suited this dress nicely.

"That went fast – I think that's the last one we have," Brenda spoke up from the counter. "Try it – it's a fun piece and really flattering on everyone who buys it."

Sonya pulled it off the rack and slung the dress over her arm. She walked over to the Sale table and picked up a wrap bracelet of white cords with small nautical charms woven into the intricate braid design. She tried the bracelet on and studied it before taking it off and hanging onto it as she wandered towards the dressing room.

Brenda grabbed the keys and unlocked the door. "Show me once you got it on, okay?"

"Deal," Sonya said as she hung the dress up on the hook and closed the door. She handed Brenda the bracelet. "Definitely want this though."

"Okay, it will be up at the front waiting for you," Brenda replied. She wandered back to the register with the bracelet and set it near the keyboard for the computer. She looked up when she heard the movement sensor on the door ring. "Hi welcome!"

"Hi there," a warm voice replied. "Um, ya don't happen to have any heart jewelry, do ya?"

Sonya paused as she zipped up the dress on the side. It sounded like the guy she saw at the café but…

"We do," Brenda said as she walked the young man over to the Sale table. "We have a few pieces on Sale and we just got some new items in over here." She gestured to the display on another table and asked if he wanted to see something in particular. The young man walked back to the Sale table and picked up a necklace and earring set. "I'll take these – my sister's gonna like these."

"Aww that's so sweet," Brenda said as she headed back to the register. She rang up his purchases and asked she could help him with anything else.

The young man pointed to the bracelet by the keyboard. "I'm guessing that's on hold for someone else?"

Brenda shot him an apologetic smile and nodded over at the dressing room. "Yeah, she's in there trying a dress on right now. Actually, can you give me a second – Sony! Are you having trouble with the dress?"

"No! No I'm fine!" Sonya called back as she secured the ties behind her neck. She smoothed the dress skirt out and studied herself in the mirror. It fit like a glove and the blue actually looked nice with her reddish blonde hair. She did a little twirl in the dress to see the skirt fly out and she smiled.

"Can I see the dress on ya?" Brenda called back.

"Um yeah," Sonya replied as she twisted the doorknob. She pushed the door to the dressing room open and she walked a few steps out, pushing the door out further so it wouldn't lock her out. She looked over at Brenda who was grinning widely at her and she noticed that the guy standing beside her was the young man from the café.

"Can you do a twirl so I can see the back?" Brenda asked as she swirled her arm in a circular motion.

Sonya did a slow twirl and felt the skirt float up slightly before falling back down as she came to a stop.

The guy studied Sonya thoughtfully and he smiled as he tilted his head towards her. "It suits you," he said with a nod.

"Uh if you don't get that dress I will be very upset with you," Brenda said as she crossed her arms over her chest. "It looks perfect on you."

"She's right – it looks really nice on ya," the guy agreed.

Sonya blushed and she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I guess I'll get it then, since I don't wanna upset you. Plus it is kind of fun," she admitted.

"Okay then, it's settled," Brenda said as she headed back to the register. "I'll ring you up when I'm done with this gent here."

"Okay then…and thanks…?" Sonya said as she looked over at the guy.

"Newt," the guy replied. "She said your name's Sonya, right?"

"Yup that's me," Sonya said. She headed back into the dressing room and pulled her phone out of her bag.

**Sonya**

Harri, you don't happen to know a Newt, do ya?

_Sent 1:27 PM_

**Harriet**

Actually, I do. He's a friend of Alby's from the UK who moved here after his mom got a new job. He's got a little sister that I sometimes babysit. Why?

Sent 1:29 PM

**Sonya**

Just asking – think I just met him when I stopped by the boutique Brenda works at. He said some nice things about a dress I tried on.

_Sent 1:30 PM_

**Harriet**

Pictures NOW!

_Sent 1:30 PM_

Sonya bit her lip as she quickly snapped a selfie in the mirror of herself and sent it to Harriet.

**Harriet**

LOVE the cut! You better get it!

_Sent 1:32 PM_

So Newt said something nice about your dress? ;)

_Sent 1:32 PM_

**Sonya**

Yeah he said it looked nice. He seems sweet but it's early to tell.

_Sent 1:33 PM_

**Harriet**

Just because Minho broke up with you before V-day, doesn't mean they're all shuckfaces. (Alby's word – not mine.) :P

_Sent 1:34 PM_

**Sonya**

True but he just could have been saying those things to be nice. Gotta run – got a dress to buy. J

_Sent 1:35 PM_

She hung the dress on its hanger and changed back into her own clothes. She tied her sneakers with double knots before grabbing the dress and exiting the dressing room.

She saw that Newt had already left and she tried to hide her disappointment as she carried her dress to the counter.

"He was cute, wasn't he?" Brenda asked as she glanced at the door before accepting Sonya's dress and removing the security tag from it. "He's new in town – just moved here from good ol' England with his mum and sister."

Sonya shook her head at Brenda's bad British accent and pulled out her wallet. "Okay, what's the damage Bren?"

Brenda wrapped up her dress and bracelet in tissue paper before putting them both into a bag. "Actually, Mr. Brit bought your dress and bracelet for you. He said you really did look stunning in that dress."

"What?! No he didn't!" Sonya protested as she tried to read the register screen for the total.

Brenda nodded as she put the bag on the counter and slid over a scrap of receipt paper with a number on it. "Yeah and he said 'If this isn't too bloody forward, can ya let her know that I think she seems rather cool and I'd like to grab a bite with her sometime?' He left his number for you Sony – I say go for it!"

Sonya blinked as she grabbed the bag handles and picked up the receipt with the number on it. She smiled as she read the quick message he had written on top.

_Sorry if this seems forward but your friend was right – that dress looked really great on you. Not to sound like a bloody stalker, but I couldn't help but notice you this morning at the café by yourself. You seemed really happy and I think it was cute that you were taking pictures of everything around you. Dunno if you're interested in me at all, but thought I'd leave my number in case you're free for coffee or tea sometime. – Newt _


End file.
